They said it would be a simple check-up, but a surprisingly complicated examination began.
Including X-rays, CT scans, blood tests, and urine tests, Soohyeok was pushed around in a wheelchair for about two hours.
And when the results came in, Soohyeok's attending physician, whose name tag read Specialist Lee Jae-ha, couldn't hide his astonishment.
"This is amazing. You've been lying in a near-vegetative state for five years, and yet your condition isn't bad at all. I can't say it's good, but it's an unbelievable result. With just a bit of effort in rehabilitation, you should be able to return to daily life soon."
Even as he spoke, Lee Jae-ha repeated his exclamations, as if he himself couldn't believe what he was saying.
Soohyeok understood his perspective.
'Under normal circumstances, my condition should be a wreck.'
Even Soohyeok had been in terrible shape when he first woke up in the early morning.
It had been so difficult to even sit up that he'd screamed in pain.
But he had quickly recovered using technique of sacred earth.
The recovery was also aided by some special medicine and IV fluids.
Still, purely from a medical standpoint, it was something close to a miracle.
According to Lee Jae-ha, most victims of the Portal Impact suffer severe aftereffects even after regaining consciousness.
Soohyeok was the first exception.
Despite having been bedridden for five years, no one had ever recovered as cleanly as he had.
This gave Soohyeok a valuable piece of information:
'Most people who regained consciousness didn't develop any special abilities.'
If they had had something like inner energy cultivation techniques or other supernatural powers, they probably would have been able to overcome those aftereffects.
"This is just out of curiosity, but… have you perhaps become an Awakened?"
At the question, Soohyeok tilted his head.
"An Awakened?"
"Yes. I mean, have you felt any strange new power within your body, or are you able to see unusual things—something along those lines?"
He couldn't be sure, but he had experienced a new kind of power when he first woke up.
Inner energy.
And he did see special things.
First, there was the Force System window that appeared before his eyes the previous night, and then there was the energy (Qi) flowing through this world.
In fact, the amount of Qi was greater than he'd expected.
Before crossing over to the Fantasy Continent, Suhyeok had read many fantasy and wuxia novels set on Earth.
Most of them depicted Earth as having almost no Qi left due to pollution or the advance of science—there were many reasons.
Because of that, Soohyeok had assumed the same. But when he used technique of sacred earth yesterday and now, when he saw the subtle flow of Qi in the air, he realized it wasn't weak at all.
Actually, it might even be more abundant than on the Fantasy Continent.
"I'm not really sure. Are there people like that?"
Soohyeok chose to hide the truth.
You could call it cowardice, but imagine being someone in their twenties with no power, suddenly dropped into a brutal world of swords and blood like ancient China. Anyone would become cautious.
"Yes, like I said, Earth now has ways to connect with other worlds. Awakened people are very important in today's society. It's a pity."
A faint sigh accompanied Lee Jae-ha's words, and a strange light briefly flickered in Soohyeok's eyes.
It seemed that in this world, being an Awakened wasn't a bad thing.
Soohyeok tried to get more information from Jae-ha afterward, but didn't gain much else.
Though he was a respected specialist at a prestigious hospital, that was all he was.
Much about Awakened individuals was still confidential, and some things could only be learned through direct experience.
'Portals, Awakened, Other Dimensions.'
Soohyeok organized these important keywords in his head.
It was this kind of clear thinking and prudent behavior that had allowed him to become the best in the Fantasy Continent.
His hospital room was moved.
Since he had regained consciousness and his condition wasn't bad, there was no need to keep him in the special care unit—this was Lee Jae-ha's opinion.
Soohyeok asked them to keep it a secret that he was a Portal Impact victim who had woken up.
This kind of occurrence was rare in Korea, and it would surely attract attention from patients, reporters, and even foreign media.
While it might bring prestige to the hospital, Soohyeok wanted time before dealing with it all.
He had no reason to refuse.
He was the kind of person who hated troublesome things.
Later that afternoon, the hospital room door burst open.
A young, pretty woman with long straight hair entered, wearing a light dress and Adidas sneakers, drawing the attention of nearby patients.
Soohyeok looked at her too.
Panting slightly from having rushed over, she was someone Soohyeok knew very well.
"Hey—!"
With that brief greeting, she stared at Soohyeok in shock, then hurried over and sat in the chair beside him.
She was clearly struggling with what to say.
It made sense.
Even in his memories, she had always been smart and beautiful—but never good at speaking.
She also found it hard to express her emotions.
"You're still as pretty as ever."
"...Is that really the first thing you say to your sister after all this time?"
"Well, you are my sister, but it's true. And I'm really glad to see you again."
At his bright smile, Soo-ah's eyes trembled.
"How's your body?"
"As you can see?"
"…Does it hurt?"
"Nope. Other than being healthy, I'm pretty much a corpse."
That was someone who had just been in a hospital bed for five years.
Even he felt embarrassed after saying it and his face flushed red.
Swoosh—
Soo-ah moved closer.
Her warm hand gently touched his forehead.
"No fever, but your face is red."
"Because I'm embarrassed. Just embarrassed."
Brushing away her hand, Soohyeok looked directly into her eyes again.
Her deeply black pupils—surprisingly so—were full of concern.
"Don't worry. I'll be up and about in no time. By the way, are you in college now?"
Soohyeok asked cautiously.
Five years ago, Soo-ah had been an 18-year-old high school student in his memory.
If things had gone normally, she would've entered college by now—likely a good one in Seoul. Not just because she was his sister, but because unlike him, Soo-ah had a real talent for academics.
She had always been among the top scorers in both school exams and national mock tests.
That is, if things had gone normally.
"I'm not a student. I didn't go to college."
≪ O , ,
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"It's not because of you, oppa."
"Really?"
"I just wanted to make money. I was also sick of studying."
Soo-ah spoke in a calm voice.
There wasn't a hint of trembling emotion on her face.
'Obviously a lie.'
But Soohyeok didn't believe what Soo-ah said.
If anything, Soo-ah was the genius type.
She didn't study out of effort but because she genuinely enjoyed it, and naturally, her grades improved. She figured out how to study on her own, sought things out herself, and never even took private lessons that everyone else did. And now she's saying she got tired of studying? He would sooner believe that cats hated fish.
In the end, it must've been the family's financial situation.
The eldest son had been in a vegetative state for five years, lying in a hospital bed.
They weren't a well-off family to begin with, so it was inevitable that their livelihood would be at risk.
She had no choice but to give up on going to college, even if it meant taking out student loans.
Knowing all this, Soohyeok still couldn't say much.
Sooah was unbelievably stubborn, no matter who she took after. Once she said no, she wouldn't accept even an apology from Soohyeok.
"When I'm discharged… I really hope you go to school."
"I told you, it's not because of you."
"I know. It's just my wish."
"I'm tired of studying."
Soohyeok smiled faintly at the repeated words.
He gently reached out and stroked Soo-ah's black hair.
"Don't. People are watching."
"So what? I'm just patting my sister's head."
"It feels weird."
Soohyeok agreed with her last words.
It did feel strange. Was it because he hadn't stroked his sister's hair in so long? Or because she had grown into such a beautiful young lady? He wasn't sure. He just felt grateful. And proud. He didn't know how the warmth of that sentiment was conveyed through his hand.
But her dark eyes were beginning to well up.
"I'm telling you… it feels weird."
Though her expression remained calm, as if she wasn't used to showing emotions, Soohyeok noticed her reddening nose.
Finally, to completely shake off Soohyeok's hand, Soo-ah suddenly stood up and said,
"I'm going to the bathroom."
She was a sister who wouldn't let her tears be seen until the very end.
***
It hadn't been long since Soo-ah left for the bathroom.
A middle-aged man and woman entered the hospital room at the same time.
Seeing the shocked, emotional, and anxious expressions on their faces, Soohyeok's mind grew muddled.
'Father, Mother.'
Just as the words swirling in his heart reached his throat—
"Oh my son!"
Yang Seungbon rushed over and gripped his hand tightly.
Rough, but warm.
Soohyeok's expression twisted into something complicated at the feeling—one he hadn't felt in who knows how long.
'Father.'
Yang Seungbon, whose original dream had been to be a writer, wasn't the typical father figure. He was unusually sensitive and emotional. By the time Soohyeok entered high school, his father had even published several novels and poetry collections.
Of course, that didn't mean they were successful.
An unsuccessful writer always bears the burden of poverty.
Soohyeok's family was no exception.
Because of that, Soohyeok didn't really like Yang Seungbon as he grew up.
He even held a fair bit of resentment.
But he was still his father.
While he was in the Hwan continent, he missed that face terribly.
Looking back, his father had been very family-oriented.
He was a good cook, took care of the housework himself, always smiled brightly, and never once complained even when things were hard. Even when Soohyeok hurled words of resentment at him, he never once frowned. With no other skills, he often did manual labor early in the morning and still never said a word about how tough it was.
How heavy that burden must have been.
How painful it must have been.
"Are you okay? You're not badly hurt, are you? Thank God, thank God."
Yang Seungbon's cautious eyes made Soohyeok's chest ache even more.
His nose stung with emotion.
Because he knew exactly why his father was still gauging his reaction at this very moment.
Before he was forcibly transported to the Hwan continent, Soohyeok had been a terrible son.
A bad son.
He frequently snapped at Yang Seungbon, as if going through a delayed rebellious phase.